2012 Oscar Predictions

Hello all. Mark here.

If it were up to me Warrior, The Guard and  Take Shelter would win all of the awards. If there were any awards left I’d give them to Like Crazy, The Trip, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Attack the Block and 50/50. However, that only happens in Hof land. So, I am going to do my best to predict the nominations. This year there are obvious choices and several dark horses. This is going to be fun! Comment and let me know what you think.

 

Best Picture

The Artist and The Descendants won Golden Globes. Hugo is about the preservation of film. The Help provides a plethora of emotions and stories. Now I have to pick one more film to be on the list. It comes down to Dragon Tattoo, Midnight in Paris, Moneyball, War Horse, Tree of Life and Bridesmaids. I will go with Midnight in Paris because people love a good Woody Allen movie. I’m thinking there might be ten nominations though. PLEASE NOMINATE WARRIOR!!!

The Artist

The Descendants

Hugo

The Help

Midnight in Paris

 

Best Actor

Clooney, Pitt, Fassbender and Dujardin will get nominations. Clooney underplays beautifully, Pitt channels Redford, Fassbender bares it all and Dujardin charms. The other two noms are not so easy to figure out. I’d vote for Michael Shannon (Take Shelter) Gary Oldman (Tinker Tailor Solider Spy)  Joel Edgerton (Warrior), Ewan McGregor (Beginners) Ryan Gosling (Drive) and Brendan Gleeson (The Guard). I hope Michael Shannon gets the last nomination. He is popular with the independent movie critics. However, he has other competition with Demian Bichir (A Better Life), Leo Dicaprio (J. Edgar) and Ryan Gosling (Ides of March) The academy likes to throw in a curve ball every once in a while so I’m going to go out on a limb (and be wrong) and add Michael Shannon to the list.

George Clooney – The Descendants

Brad Pitt – Moneyball

Jean Dujardin – The Artist

Michael Fassbender – Shame

Michael Shannon – Take Shelter

 

Best Actress

Streep, Davis and Williams are locks for nominations. The other two picks are where it gets interesting. I’m thinking Glenn Close will get one of the nominations because she plays a woman who disguises herself as a man. These kind of roles are Oscar bait (Boy’s Don’t Cry). The fifth is a battle between Rooney Mara (Dragon Tattoo) and Tilda Swinton (We Need to Talk About Kevin). The problem is that these three actresses could easily knock each other out.

I’d love to see Charlize Theron (Young Adult) get a nomination. She plays much more than an angry pretty lady. Her performance has more layers than seventeen onions.

Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady

Michelle Williams – My Week with Marilyn

Viola Davis – The Help

Glen Close – Albert Nobbs

Tilda Swinton – We Need to Talk About Kevin

Dark horse – Rooney Mara..People love her performance which she mimicked from Noomi Rapace. Mara said she never watched the originals but I have a hard time believing that.

 

Best Supporting Actor –  Warrior should have three nominations (Hardy, Grillo, Nolte).  I’m going out on a limb and saying Nick Nolte will grab a nod (1 in 3 ain’t bad).   Plummer, Brooks and Hill are locks. The final vote comes down to Kenneth Branagh and Max Von Sydow. I gotta go with the Branagh (people love him). It would be neat for Patton Oswalt to get a nod for Young Adult but Hill has the market cornered on sidekicks

Nick Nolte – Warrior

Christopher Plummer – Beginners

Albert Brooks – Drive

Jonah Hill – Moneyball

Kenneth Branagh – My Week With Marilyn

 

Best Supporting Actress – Bejo, McCarthy, Spencer and Chastain are locks. The only thing that could knock out Chastain is that she starred in so many good movies this year (Tree of Life, Take Shelter, The Debt, Texas Killing Fields). Her votes could be split. The final nomination will most likely go to The Descendant’s Woodley. She gives a solid performance that was well above her years in maturity and could have been über clichéd.

Berenice Bejo – The Artist

Melissa McCarthy – Bridesmaids

Jessica Chastain – The Help

Octavia Spencer – The Help

Shailene Woodley – The Descendants

Payne, Scorsese, Hazanavcius and Allen are locks. I really hope Tree of Life gets a best picture nomination. However, I don’t think it will if there are five. (10 yes). So, Malick will pick up a nod for director. I also want Refn to get a nod for Drive….The movie is too bloody and unpredictable though.

 

Best Director

Alexander Payne – The Descendants

Martin Scorsese – Hugo

Michel Hazanavcius – The Artist

Terrence Mallick – Tree of Life

Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris

There are many movies that could make the cut:  Margin Call, Take Shelter, Young Adult, Tree of Life, Dragon Tattoo, Drive, War Horse, A Better Life. However, I’m sticking with the ten below. I would love to see Beginners nominated but 50/50 has a better chance.

 

Best Original Screenplay

1. Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris

2. Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist

3. Kristen Wiig & Annie Mumulo, Bridesmaids

4. Will Reiser, 50/50

5. Tom McCarthy and Joe Tibani, Win Win

 

Best Adapted Screenplay

1. Nat Faxon, Alexander Payne & Jim Rash, The Descendants

2. Aaron Sorkin & Steven Zaillian, Moneyball

3. John Logan, Hugo

4. Tate Taylor, The Help

5. Bridget O’Connor & Peter Straughan, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy